Gooey New Year
by Shana Hager
Summary: Two ghost hunters in green ring in the New Year together.


Another year was about to draw to a close. And what a year it was! The green, gooey humanoid surely agreed, for it was the year he met his special somebody.

Technically, he first met this special somebody in the past, but their interactions weren't as intense as this year's interactions. Besides, he was still quite "young"—having been created from ectoplasm and coffee ten months before being sent to the year 2001 for "testing". When he met the young man on whom his appearance was based, he felt a bit of a connection, but he didn't necessarily know that the connection was love—yet.

He'd spent the majority of 2019 in the Professor's lab, helping him with his work and learning how to change fluidity at will. When he wasn't plodding around with gooey footsteps, then he was comfortably relaxing in a special Plexiglass tank. Aside from the Professor, there were lots of friendly ghosts to interact with, and his flesh-and-blood counterpart would visit from time to time. Life was good, but the days in a relatively controlled environment became relatively bland, leaving Gooigi aching for adventure.

And ultimately, adventure called.

Gooigi's first real test arrived in October 2019, when King Boo tricked the Professor into setting him free before luring his former captor into a ghostly trap. The green humanoid didn't remember much at first—just some voices and beeps—until he was summoned from his tank and found himself face-to-face with his flesh-and-blood counterpart.

Of course, Gooigi didn't expect Luigi to recognize him. The two of them had only been introduced once before the Professor sent the former into the past. But he was pleasantly surprised when he _was_ recognized.

However, catching up would have to wait. For the third time in his life, Luigi was on a terrifying mission to rescue his friends from King Boo's wrath. But now, he wouldn't be alone. Gooigi understood that Luigi was in a dangerous situation, and despite his vulnerability to fire and water, he silently vowed to protect him. And even if his companion was green, gooey and in his likeness, Luigi visibly appreciated the help.

When they weren't fighting ghosts, the two of them were venturing through the floors of the haunted hotel everyone had been trapped in, listening to the music on Luigi's phone. It was a reliable technique that the man in green employed to keep his sanity. When his phone's battery was low, or when the two reached an area where both ears were required, then Luigi would quietly hum or whistle to himself. Or, if he was feeling especially bold, he'd tell Gooigi a dirty joke or two, causing the latter to burst out laughing. The two of them worked together to solve puzzles and battle their way up to the hotel's roof, where they faced off against the reviled King Boo and saved the day.

And that was when Gooigi realized—he'd fallen in love.

The duo spent even more time together in the wake of the incident, Gooigi helping Luigi and his friends heal from King Boo's torment. The green humanoid would sit and listen to his counterpart pouring his heart out about the nightmares he had to endure, about how he tried to be strong for the others, who were likewise suffering from sleepless nights. And Gooigi would just hug him, gurgling comfortingly into his ear and telling him, in his own gooey way, that everything would be all right.

Now, two months after that grand adventure, Professor Gadd was back in Evershade Valley, hosting a bash which would send off 2019 in style. There were games, live music and different varieties of food—and drinks flowed profusely. Gooigi's gooey body had vibrated to the music, but Gadd had kept him away from the alcoholic beverages, unsure as to how his composition would react to it.

"Gooigi? Is that you?"

Gooigi turned at the sound of that familiar voice and all but dashed into Luigi's arms.

Luigi chuckled. "It's so good to see you," he said. "Are you ready to put 2019 behind us or what?"

"Oh, yeah!" Gooigi gurgled in assent.

"Yeah, it's been a tough year, but in a way, I'm glad the events that happened—happened. Because I was able to learn from it. And if my friends and I hadn't been trapped like that, then I wouldn't have met you."

Gooigi gurgled something in reply.

"We make a great team, you and I," Luigi went on, "and I hope we can team up on more than just ghost-capturing in the New Year."

A smile spread on Gooigi's face. He'd like that, too.

Luigi checked his watch. "Only five minutes left until 2020," he said. "Wanna look for a good spot to watch the fireworks?"

"Okeydokey!" gurgled Luigi.

Hand-in-hand, Luigi and Gooigi worked their way through the crowing crowd, smiling and saying hello to the other guests as they passed, eventually meeting up with Gadd. The elderly professor chatted with Luigi for a bit, and Gooigi tuned out the conversation, instead recounting every pulse-pounding second of that night in the Last Resort which served to bring him closer to his green-clad counterpart.

There were now two minutes until 2020. Gooigi noticed that Luigi had finished his talk with Gadd, softly uttering his name to get his attention.

"What is it?" asked Luigi.

Gooigi blushed a little, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Is something wrong?" Luigi asked with concern.

"I…" Gooigi gurgled. "I—like you."

Luigi blushed in kind. "I like you, too."

"No…" Off of Luigi's expression, he clarified, "I _like_ you."

"You mean…" Luigi blushed even deeper. "_That_ kind of like?"

Gooigi nodded.

Luigi looked flustered. "Well, I…"

Gooigi held a gentle finger to Luigi's lips. "S'okay," he gurgled. "S'okay, Luigi. S'okay."

He then slipped a gooey hand into Luigi's, relieved when the man in green didn't yank it away.

The final minute of 2019 began to tick down.

"Hey, Gooigi," said Luigi as he interlaced his fingers with his gooey counterpart. "Before the fireworks start—I just want to say—thanks. I don't think I would've survived that night without you."

Their eyes met, and Gooigi smiled.

"I guess we _could_ be more than a team, huh?"

This elicited a giggle from Gooigi.

The two fell silent, and then the final countdown commenced.

10—

9—

8—

7—

6—

5—

4—

3—

2—

1—

The clock stuck midnight, and then Gooigi leaned over and took Luigi's mouth in his. He half-expected Luigi to resist, but he didn't.

Around them, the party guests cheered, and the fireworks exploded in the dark violet sky. A feeling of giddy excitement stirred inside them both as Gooigi wrapped his arms around Luigi and lifted him into the air, the two of them continuing to smooch like the romantic leads at the end of a sappy movie on the Hallmark channel.

The two ghost hunters finally separated, catching their breath and gazing intently at one another.

"Happy New Year!" gurgled Gooigi.

Luigi smiled, stroking Gooigi's cheek with a gloved hand.

"Happy New Year, Gooigi."

**Happy New Year, everyone! See you in 2020!**


End file.
